Letters to the Editor

SIR, - Otley Community Policing Team's response to vandalism, reported in last week's Wharfedale Observer, that 'Otley could solve its youth problem but would need evidence gained from CCTV cameras' is totally unacceptable.

Our local police must stop making excuses for their complete inability to protect the town from the problems caused by a handful of children. Although the police might choose to elevate a few children to 'gang' status, this does nothing but encourage those concerned to believe they are important and beyond the reach of the law.

If video evidence is required, and it is known where these 'gangs' habitually cause trouble, then surely it should not be beyond the wit of even our police to obtain the required evidence using hidden cameras in nearby buildings or vehicles.

We are told that some places (for example Guiseley AFC's ground at Nethermoor Park) are routinely vandalised every Friday night. Why then do the police not 'stake out' the ground, and catch those responsible in the act?

Elsewhere in the country police forces are using sophisticated surveillance techniques to capture highly trained terrorists. Why then cannot our local police catch a few children? What chance would we have if they had to protect us against serious professional criminals or terrorists?

Harold Best, our Labour MP, should write to our Chief Constable leaving him in no doubt that his performance in our area is wholly unacceptable, and if he continues to let a few children disrupt our community there will be local lobbying at the highest level for him to be replaced.

What is the point of the tax payer employing a Chief Constable who cannot organise his force to control a few children? I look forward to seeing Mrs Best's letter to the Chief Constable published in the Wharfedale Observer.

The decision makers in our local police must sharpen up their act and remove their negative mindset that nothing can be done until CCTV or some other extra resource arrives.

Some of our local politicians must also stop making excuses for these children. Contrary to some of their statements, there is plenty for young people to do in Otley, and even if there were no facilities, it is still no excuse for crime and vandalism.

Local voters will punish local politicians who make excuses for young criminals. Each and every candidate from every party should condemn without reservation all crime, anti-social acts and vandalism, and should maintain unrelenting pressure on the Chief Constable and his local officers to do the job we all pay them to do.

Peter Carey

Wharfeview,

Leeds Road

Otley.

Centre points

SIR, - I am not surprised that Mr Brear was confused by the inaccuracies in the recent Labour leaflet concerning the Civic Centre. Maybe it would be for the best if I set out some facts.

Fact 1 - The Civic Centre belongs to Leeds City Council not Otley Town Council.

Fact 2 - The Labour controlled city council arbitrarily closed the building some 20 years ago. In response to the public outcry the then town council agreed to manage the building, which allowed it to remain open.

Fact 3 - The town council could only do this by levying an extra Council Tax on the people of Otley, (this year over £100,000) which was not paid by anyone else in Leeds. Otley's Council Tax payers continued to subsidise public halls in the rest of Leeds.

Fact 4 - The city council has spent no money on planned maintenance and the building is now in a very poor state of repair. The best estimate of repair costs are in excess of £1 million.

Fact 5 - Rather than spend all this money on a building which even after the work would not provide a full range of services for the town, the city and town councils decided to look at the possibility of building a new centre with a range of new facilities to complement those transferred from the old one.

Fact 6 - There is no suggestion that the old building would be demolished, rather it would be used for other purposes.

Fact 7 - Any new building would belong to the people of Otley.

Fact 8 - No current user of the Civic Centre would be excluded from the new centre. Indeed there would be space for new uses and users.

Fact 9 - There is no suggestion of the old Centre closing until after the new one opens.

I do not regard the current proposals as a disaster, rather as an opportunity to provide something better for Otley.

Coun Colin Campbell

11 Prince Henry Road,

Otley.

Dental 'floss'

SIR, - In 1999, Blair promised, 'that by 2001 all patients will have access to an NHS dentist'. This is just one of many broken promises the Labour Party hopes you have forgotten.

Today there are 32 million patients who don't have an NHS dentist and this is about to increase as dentists reject the latest NHS contract. Queuing for an NHS dentist, as occurred at Scarborough, will become the norm and the people of Otley could soon become victims of a disappearing service.

So don't be surprised to receive a letter to inform you your dentist has gone private.

To save money, the Government is proposing that dental inspection intervals are increased from six to 15 months. For Labour, saving money is more important than saving teeth and it is cheaper to extract, than fill, scrape and polish.

Although this is a relatively minor but important matter, it demonstrates how unreliable is any pronouncement that comes from Blair's mouth. It is amazing, that with his record there is anyone who still believes anything he says. But there is, and this is very dangerous, as we know to our cost from the Iraq debacle.

Blair's latest confused statements on the European constitution show his state of mind. His U turn on a referendum was followed by a series of conflicting statements over how many times he will hold referendums if he doesn't get the result he wants.

Blair is totally unfit to run the country and he and the local councillors and MPs who support him should be dismissed at the earliest opportunity to minimise any more damage, i.e. at the June local elections.

The 1999 Blair dentistry promise was just one of many fraudulent entries in Chairman Blair's Little Red Book of spin and propaganda, which is now so full, it is an encyclopaedia.

Malcolm Naylor

21 Grange View,

Otley.

Army plea

SIR, - I am writing to you on behalf of 260 Signal Squadron (SAM) Royal Signals Association. We are trying to trace more than 300 ex-soldiers who served with 260 Signal Squadron (SAM), 654 Signal Squadron (SAGW) and 655 Signal Squadron (SAGW) in the period 1962-1977.

Our squadron, which was formed at Shoebury, Essex, in April 1968, was disbanded in Dortmund, Germany, in 1977 and we have a well established association with more than 200 ex-members on our mailing list but we continue to search for many more.

Many of the lads from the squadron came from Yorkshire; many others married Yorkshire lasses and it is our belief that many will have returned to Yorkshire when they retired from the Army.

In May this year we plan to hold our seventh annual reunion in Dortmund and our hope is to find as many of our old comrades as possible by then and would appreciate your help in reporting this.

Our association has a website at www.260sigsqnsam.abelgratis.co.uk where former members of these units can reach us quickly., Alternatively they should write to: The Secretary, Mr. Geoff Scott, 2 Waverley Road, Elland, West Yorkshire, HX5 0NL

Archie Cairns

Association Webmaster

Big brother

SIR, - .Regarding your lead article ('Pub landlords call for CCTV ') on April 22.

The installation of CCTV cameras in Otley (they already exist in places) will do nothing to stem the yob culture.

The only way to deal with the modern phenomenon of the yob, is to bring back the old fashioned phenomenon of the cane, applied vigorously to the bottoms of these young criminals.

According to your news report, these yobs are already taking their trousers down to show off their bare behinds to passers by, so they will of had plenty of practice if ever the authorities wake up and introduce something that really will have an effect. We do not want or need any more 'big brother'. ets stop playing into the hands of the yobs and criminals.

Thomas Jefferson once said "Nations that sacrifice a little liberty for a little order, will lose both and deserve neither".

P INGLE

inglexx@yahoo.co.uk

Last event

SIR, - I shall be staging my last event as Otley Town Mayor on Saturday, May 8, at the Civic Centre, Cross Green, Otley, starting at 7.30pm. The event will be a 70s style variety night with the Centre Stage Academy providing dancers and singers, the famous local comedian Peter 'Machine Gun' Wallis and top local band, Above Average Weight Band.

Tickets for the event cost only £5 each and that also includes a light supper. There will also be a raffle and an auction of autographed goods including items from Tony Blair, Michael Howard, Leeds United, Bradford City and Leeds Rhinos to name but a few. The profits from this night will go to the Jacob Burnham Appeal which is trying to raise £20,000 to buy a local boy who is blind and disabled a car for his parents to take him about in. it is hoped that the event will prove to be a sell out, but tickets are still available from Waye and Sons Travel Agents, Kirkgate; Colin Pitt, Leeds Road Garage, Leeds Road; Browse Time Book Shop, Bridge Street and Otley Civic Centre, Cross Green. Any donations, no matter how big or small, may be sent to me at the following address.

Coun Nigel Francis

6 Pearson's Buildings

Otley.

Voting abuse

SIR, - We are told that an all-postal ballot will encourage more people to vote.

Any householder will be able to vote on behalf of himself and also his partner, whether she agrees with his political views or not. He can vote on behalf of any of his children of voting age who are still living at home.

He can vote on behalf of his lodger and anyone else living in his property. He can vote on behalf of his senile granny and also his granddad even though he may have died three months earlier.

He can vote on behalf of his neighbours and other abstainers using any ballot paper that he can beg, borrow or steal. He can vote early. He can vote often. An all-postal ballot may result in more votes being cast but it is wide open to abuse. Only a banana republic would consider this to be a fair system of voting.

C M Harper

Banksfield Avenue,

Yeadon.

Lorry issue

SIR, - I refer to the comment made by North Yorkshire County Council on April 15 in relation to the so called 'one-way system' they say is in operation for the quarry vehicles using Otley as a short cut.

This so called one-way system is not working. I regularly use Newall Carr Road and Billams Hill and there is definitely a noticeable increase in the quarry vehicles using Otley on their return journey, which is against the wishes and instructions of the quarry management.

This combined with the current upheaval with gas main replacement is making life intolerable for local residents - so come on North Yorks start checking more often and give us some peace.

Peter Giles

St Richards Road,

Otley.